impurity

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English

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Etymology

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From impure +‎ -ity. From Middle French impurité, from Latin impuritas.

Pronunciation

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This citrine stone is a quartz stone that has turned golden yellow due to iron impurities.

Noun

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impurity (countable and uncountable, plural impurities)

  1. The condition of being impure; because of contamination, pollution, adulteration or insufficient purification.
    Even animals in the Jewish system cause impurity only when they are dead.
  2. A component or additive that renders something else impure.
    The impurities in the iron ore made extraction of the iron very difficult.
    • 2013 June 1, “A better waterworks”, in The Economist[1], volume 407, number 8838, page 5 (Technology Quarterly):
      An artificial kidney these days still means a refrigerator-sized dialysis machine. Such devices mimic the way real kidneys cleanse blood and eject impurities and surplus water as urine.
  3. A state of immorality or sin; especially the weakness of the flesh: inchastity.
    With his cheating, lying and stealing, he epitomised the impurity of humanity.

Synonyms

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Antonyms

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Translations

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